This glossary contains an alphabetical list of Buddhist terms that you may find on this website. Many of the terms now include phoneticized Sanskrit (Skt) as well as two forms of Tibetan—the phonetic version (Tib), which is a guide to pronunciation, and transliteration using the Wylie method (Wyl). Search for the term you want by entering it in the search box or browse through the listing by clicking on the letters below. Please see our Content Disclaimer regarding English terms in LYWA publications that may be outdated and should be considered in context.
Sacred word of honor; the pledges and commitments made by a disciple at an initiation to keep tantric vows for life or to perform certain practices connected with the deity, such as daily sadhana recitation, or offering the Guru Puja on the tenth and the twenty-fifth of each Tibetan month.
One of 32 deities from the Guhyasamaja mandala, a Highest Yoga Tantra practice. This practice purifies broken samaya in relation to one’s spiritual guide.
The enjoyment body; the form in which the enlightened mind appears in order to benefit highly realized bodhisattvas. See also five certainties, dharmakaya, nirmanakaya, rupakaya, two kayas, three kayas and four kayas.
Early non-Buddhist philosophical school; the so-called "enumerators," because they advocate a definite enumeration of the causes that produce existents.
Cyclic existence; the six realms of conditioned existence, three lower—hell, hungry ghost (Skt: preta), and animal—and three upper—human, demigod (Skt: asura), and god (Skt: sura). The beginningless, recurring cycle of death and rebirth under the control of delusion and karma, fraught with suffering. Also refers to the contaminated aggregates of a sentient being.
See buddha.
Spiritual community; the third of the Three Jewels of Refuge. In Tibetan gen dun literally means intending (dun) to virtue (ge). Absolute Sangha are those who have directly realized emptiness; relative Sangha refers to a group of at least four fully ordained monks or nuns.
A great eighth century Indian yogi; one of the 84 mahasiddhas and founders of the Vajrayana, particularly the Mahamudra tradition. He composed many famous tantric songs.
A female buddha embodying creativity and wisdom, (the Tibetan means "Melodious Lady"). Her wrathful aspect is Palden Lhamo, the chief protector of the Tibetan people.
A small town near Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India; the site of Deer Park, where the Buddha first turned the wheel of Dharma, giving his famous discourse on the four noble truths.
The Sutra school, one of the two main Hinayana (Lesser Vehicle) philosophical schools. The Sutra school accepts both self-knowers and external objects. See also the four Buddhist philosophical schools.
The Sutra Middle Way Autonomy school, a division of the Svatantrika (Autonomy school) of Buddhist philosophy. The proponent asserts a presentation of conventionalities through mostly conforming with the Sautrantika (Sutra school). Examples of Sutra Middle Way Autonomists are Bhavaviveka and Jnanagarbha. See also Yogacara-Svatantrika-Madhyamaka and the four Buddhist philosophical schools.
One who liberates us from both the lower and the upper realms and leads us to enlightenment, the guru. Lama Zopa Rinpoche advises to avoid "protector" in this context.
The mind wanders from the object of meditation to an unintended object. Scattering to another object is induced through either (1) the force of attachment; (2) the force of anger; or (3) virtuous thoughts. Scattering through attachment is most common, the other two less so, but all are obstacles to single-pointed concentration. See also attachment-scattering thought, sinking thought and lethargy.
One of the six groups of mental factors, these are the afflicted or nonvirtuous minds that arise in dependence on the root delusions such as attachment, anger and so forth. There are twenty: belligerence, resentment, concealment, spite, jealousy, miserliness, deceit, dissimulation, haughtiness, harmfulness, non-shame (shamelessness), non-embarrassment (inconsideration), lethargy, excitement, non-faith (faithlessness), laziness, non-conscientiousness, forgetfulness, non-introspection (non-alertness) and distraction.
Another name for Vajrayana, so called because it should not be revealed to those not ready.
In tantric visualizations, a Sanskrit syllable arising out of emptiness and out of which the meditational deity in turn arises. A single syllable representing a deity’s entire mantra.
The practice in Vajrayana where the meditator visualizes him- or herself as the deity. See also front generation.
The self-centered attitude of considering one’s own happiness to be more important than that of others.
The mind that apprehends the self as inherently existent. This refers to both the self of persons and the self of phenomena.
A Highest Yoga Tantra meditation practice performed without the presence of an empowering lama, following initiation and completion of a long retreat and fire puja.
According to the Prasangika Madhyamaka school, the most subtle view of selflessness of person is the lack of inherent existence of the person or self. The five aggregates of body and mind are the mere basis of imputation of the self or “I”, which does not exist from its own side. See also selflessness of phenomena.
According to the Prasangika Madhyamaka school, the most subtle view of selflessness of phenomena—all things other than the self or person—is their lack of inherent existence, thus phenomena are empty of existing from their own side, by their own characteristics. See also selflessness of person.
Any being who has not abandoned the two obscurations.
One of the three great Gelugpa monasteries near Lhasa; founded in the early fifteenth century by Jamchen Chöje, a disciple of Lama Tsongkhapa; now also established in exile in south India. It has two colleges, Sera Je, with which Lama Zopa Rinpoche is connected, and Sera Me.
The first in the line of incarnations, this great Tibetan yogi was the incarnation of Marpa, the translator. He was famous for his scholarship and wisdom, and after practicing tantra in solitary retreat, manifested signs of realizations.
The second in the line of incarnations, this great yogi studied sutra and tantra at Ganden and Gyüme monasteries in Tibet. After fleeing Tibet, he lived for many years in Swayambhunath, Nepal, where he became a guru of Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
Born in India and recognized as the third in the line of incarnations by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama. He received a geshe degree in 2010 and completed his studies at Gyüme Tantric College in 2013. Since then he has been travelling and giving Buddhist teachings, as well as looking after his monastery, Serkong Dorjee Chang Monastery, in Swayambunath, Nepal.
A renowned tenth century master from Muara Jambi in Suvarnadvipa, the “golden island,” now known as Sumatra. Serlingpa was the main teacher of Lama Atisha, who travelled to Sumatra and studied thought transformation with him for twelve years.
One of two methods used in Tibetan Buddhism for developing bodhicitta. The seven points are: 1) seeing all beings as your mother; 2) remembering the kindness of the mother; 3) wishing to repay the kindness; 4) love; 5) compassion; 6) special intention; 7) generating the mind of enlightenment. The other method is equalizing and exchanging the self with others.
Symbolizing the seven factors of enlightenment, they are: the precious wheel (mindfulness), the precious elephant (wisdom) the precious horse (energy), the precious jewel (joy), the precious queen (tranquility), the precious minister (concentration) and the precious general (equanimity).
They are: faith, ethics, learning, generosity, consideration for others, integrity and wisdom.
The seven limbs are: prostrating, making offerings, confession, rejoicing, requesting to turn the Dharma wheel, requesting the teachers to remain in the world and dedicating.
They are: 1) legs in vajra (full lotus) position or crossed; 2) hands in meditation mudra; 3) back straight; 4) jaw relaxed, tongue against palate; 5) head tilted forward; 6) eyes slightly open, gaze directed downwards; 7) shoulders level and relaxed.
Music; one of the offering substances.
